…than the thought of losing my mind. Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease are scary prospects of aging. Have you watched a loved one become forgetful or start repeating himself?
What if you could prevent the cognitive decline from affecting you? Focus on your midsection.
A 2008 study in Neurology showed that mental impairments are nearly 3 times more likely to strike those with excessive abdominal fat. The researchers measured the sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) of over 6,500 Californians. Thirty-six years later the researchers checked medical records and found dementia diagnosis 272% more in those who had 9.8 inch SAD versus those with only 7.5 inch or less SAD.
The results are striking as it suggests central obesity during a person’s 30’s and 40’s accurately predicts risk of mental decline after age 70.
To measure your SAD, lie on your back with your knees bent and lower back touching the floor. Balance a yardstick across your abdomen halfway between the top of your pelvis and your lowest rib. Then use a ruler to measure the distance from the floor to the balanced yardstick. If you find this confusing, there is a helpful diagram at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagittal_Abdominal_Diameter.
If yours SAD is over 10 inches please feel free to contact me at thies@umich.edu. Better Living offers weight loss/management classes, nutrition counseling and exercise programming.
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Whitmer, R.A. et. al., Central obesity and increased risk of dementia more than three decades later, Neurology March 26, 2008
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagittal_Abdominal_Diameter
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